# Lighters... Why torch, Why Soft Flame???



## jonnygranada (Feb 25, 2016)

Basically i want to know why people prefer a torch to a soft flame lighter or vise versa.... Aside from cost, or the inability to hold on to said lighters, nothing that i have found over the past few days really states why people chose one over the other.

Heres why i ask, im making a vintage style smoke room, think circa late 40's early 50's, complete with some vintage drums in the corner (1955 Slingerland RadioKings for those who care...LOL!) One of those important features is a nice table top lighter from the era. But as i look through the internet looking at vintage TT lighters some obviously work, others dont, the price is way different between the two. 

Me personally, i use a zippo to light my cigars, i find that if i light it and wait a few i get no bad side tastes, to me its the same as if i use my Z-torch.... To each their own, right? However im not opposed to asking if there is something im missing. Im going to leave that statement vague because i want other peoples opinions. Ultimately though, i would like a working TT lighter that is from the 40/50's but if there is something that im missing when it comes to a tase difference or what not from a torch, well then im going to save myself a few bucks and get one thats more for show.... I really want to know your opinion, im trying to learn new stuff about a glorious habit ive had for years!:vs_cool:

Thanks everyone!


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## UBC03 (Nov 18, 2015)

I've used bics,zippos,1,2,3,4 flame torches, cedar spills and matches. I prefer the 2 flame torch. Wind resistant, good for all gauges,and good for touch ups. Touch up being the main thing it has over the rest. I have a quad torch table lighter. I have major issues using it, toasts and lights way too quick. I end up scorching my sticks, but the tank is huge so I keep it handy when it's more than just me smoking. I agree if you leave I zippo burn for a few seconds ,it doesn't leave a taste. To each they're own as they say. It's only my 2 cents.


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## Cigary (Oct 19, 2007)

Torches burn at 2500F and higher when you add double and triple flames. A soft flame burns at around 1200F and the burn rate along with how tobacco can and will be scorched with too high of a temp. it affects the quality of the cigar....let's not kid ourselves. When tobacco is scorched it will impart that burnt taste all the way to the head of the cigar and unless one doesn't care about this factoid...then it doesn't matter what is used to light your cigar. .. a torch or a road flare.

People will use whatever source they want to.


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## Bird-Dog (Oct 16, 2009)

Torch all the way for me. I prefer a single jet for its pin-point accuracy, but multi's certainly do seem to have a bigger following for their speed and coverage. As to the why, I pre-light my cigars before I ever take a puff. A soft flame simply cannot do that evenly, at least not not in my hands and not consistently. 

But, if you're used to puffing on the flame to get your cigar lit, then it may not matter. In fact, that probably favors a soft flame.


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## UBC03 (Nov 18, 2015)

Cigary said:


> Torches burn at 2500F and higher when you add double and triple flames. A soft flame burns at around 1200F and the burn rate along with how tobacco can and will be scorched with too high of a temp. it affects the quality of the cigar....let's not kid ourselves. When tobacco is scorched it will impart that burnt taste all the way to the head of the cigar and unless one doesn't care about this factoid...then it doesn't matter what is used to light your cigar. .. a torch or a road flare.
> 
> People will use whatever source they want to.


It's takes some practice using a torch. I see guys put it right up to the foot and scorch the hell out of their smoke. Like I said I struggle with my quad torch, but I have my dual flame down pat. When you figure out the distance to keep it away from the foot it makes things much easier. A couple years ago I tried matches and spills cause I thought it looked cool and added to the ritual. I screwed up more cigars than I would ever mess up with my torch. They could be the biggest pain in the posterior I've ever encountered.


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## Cigary (Oct 19, 2007)

curmudgeonista said:


> Torch all the way for me. I prefer a single jet for its pin-point accuracy, but multi's certainly do seem to have a bigger following for their speed and coverage. As to the why, I pre-light my cigars before I ever take a puff. A soft flame simply cannot do that evenly, at least not not in my hands and not consistently.
> 
> But, if you're used to puffing on the flame to get your cigar lit, then it may not matter. In fact, that probably favors a soft flame.


There are soft flames that produce a wide flame and are wind resistant. ...a single flame torch can be used to light a cigar under a controlled burn where the flame doesn't touch the foot. ..it does take some practice.


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## Bird-Dog (Oct 16, 2009)

Cigary said:


> Torches burn at 2500F and higher when you add double and triple flames. A soft flame burns at around 1200F and the burn rate along with how tobacco can and will be scorched with too high of a temp. it affects the quality of the cigar....let's not kid ourselves. When tobacco is scorched it will impart that burnt taste all the way to the head of the cigar and unless one doesn't care about this factoid...then it doesn't matter what is used to light your cigar. .. a torch or a road flare.
> 
> People will use whatever source they want to.


I think it's more about the ignition temperature of the tobacco. If the source of the heat is applied properly, the temp of the flame/jet at it's base shouldn't matter... within reason, of course.

The problem I sometimes have when I use a triple or quad torch isn't with regulating the temp of the cigar foot... adjusting time and distance take care of that... it's that the spread of that high temp blast overshoots the foot and gets the side of the wrapper scorched.


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## Ky-Cap-Tan (Aug 11, 2012)

Tough one for me, but I have to say my preference of all my lighters is my colibri wellington soft flame. I must qualify that i only use this when smoking in a controlled environment with no wind.... can't take it to the beach with me..... I have an Alec Bradley Burner table lighter, a lotus triple torch (Never again for Lotus, customer service issues for me), and a couple of xikar double torch lighters. All have their place i guess, but i love my soft flame.


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## NormH3 (Apr 20, 2015)

I use a twin torch to light, but also have a few Bics lying around. I smoke outside only. The torch can be tough on the nose if you have to relight a nub.


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## Chewbacca (Oct 10, 2015)

I have been looking for a solid, allround, no nonsense, rock and roll lighter for ages, and I'm seriously looking at returning to the Zippo. It is the one lighter that can take a beating, and is good in windy places. 

Some people complain that the whiff of lighter fluid brings them back to their juvenile delinquent fluid sniffing days, but as noted above, it only takes a few seconds to deal with that. 

You can also have them done up to look as rock and roll as you want, and you can pick them up and fix them up in all kinds of crazy places. I have used petrol and diesel and paraffin when I couldn't get lighter fluid, and used shreds of cotton for wicks when they ran out. The Zippo is the AK47 of lighters, IMHO.


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## Hudabear (Feb 1, 2016)

Chewbacca said:


> I have been looking for a solid, allround, no nonsense, rock and roll lighter for ages, and I'm seriously looking at returning to the Zippo. It is the one lighter that can take a beating, and is good in windy places.
> 
> Some people complain that the whiff of lighter fluid brings them back to their juvenile delinquent fluid sniffing days, but as noted above, it only takes a few seconds to deal with that.
> 
> You can also have them done up to look as rock and roll as you want, and you can pick them up and fix them up in all kinds of crazy places. I have used petrol and diesel and paraffin when I couldn't get lighter fluid, and used shreds of cotton for wicks when they ran out. The Zippo is the AK47 of lighters, IMHO.


I've used cologne when out of zippo fluid in my younger days.


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## MichiganSRT8 (Jan 9, 2016)

Good thread as I have been dabbling with other lighting options and getting a process down that I can trust. Started with a quad flame torch, though tit was the bees knees and thats all I used. Lately I have been using nice soft flame lighters and long stem matches, I found I am able to get a much better toast on the foot and create a much better smoke, I would create a torched tobacco much too often with the torch. Now the soft flame works best for me, but I keep a ronson as well with me for touch ups and such and let alone those are so cheap. Just my .02 though.


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## Chewbacca (Oct 10, 2015)

Hudabear said:


> I've used cologne when out of zippo fluid in my younger days.


I drank cologne when I ran out of booze in my younger days.


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## gcbright (Dec 1, 2012)

I haven't used a good soft flame in years. Do you still have to replace the flint every so often or has technology gone past that point?


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## Bird-Dog (Oct 16, 2009)

gcbright said:


> I haven't used a good soft flame in years. Do you still have to replace the flint every so often or has technology gone past that point?


I wonder where you'd even buy a pack of flints these days?


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## gcbright (Dec 1, 2012)

curmudgeonista said:


> I wonder where you'd even buy a pack of flints these days?


Suddenly I am feeling very old.


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## UBC03 (Nov 18, 2015)

I use zippos for my cigarettes. .I buy em at my local cigarette shop and grocery store. .I keep em everywhere, including the bottom of my zippo. They always run out at the worst times.


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## gcbright (Dec 1, 2012)

UBC03 said:


> I use zippos for my cigarettes. .I buy em at my local cigarette shop and grocery store. .I keep em everywhere, including the bottom of my zippo. They always run out at the worst times.


The greatest lighter change to me was fuel gauges and clear bodies to keep an eye on the butane level. That said, I still carry at least two in pocket and two in my car.


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## Rondo (Sep 9, 2015)

Xikar and DuPont single torches while on the deck. The DuPont Urban for when I have to put clothes on.


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## jonnygranada (Feb 25, 2016)

well based on what i see here, it really is nothing more than a preference when it comes to lighters. That makes me very happy, and at the same not feel like such a dork for having a specific lighter for everything. I mean i have a zippo of my cigarettes, one soft wide flame (modified) zippo and one butane zippo for my stogies, and one for my pipes.... Did i mention i like zippos??? For the record their hand warmers are pretty kick ass too!!!! 

So it does look like it was a good thing i got a working table top lighter LOL!!! i could resist i found one for a good price literally two minutes after i posted my original question. But it is a soft flame that has the older style cotton fabric wick. the style of wick that is about an inch wide..... I think it will be good for a cigar, and it not, it was only 15 dollars, plus i think it looks cool. Its a bowling ball!!! if that doesnt scream 50's man cave i dont know what does!!!! 

Thanks for the input everyone, but please continue! Im very intrigued by the comments!

Ps. for those feeling old talking zippos.... My main zippo, was purchased in 1998 and has been carried every day since. been repaired twice, and gives my kids a kick knowing that my lighter is older than they are! Before i got my own, i was using my grandfathers that was issued to him in 1921 while in the army! worked better than any lighter i had ever used prior, right up till the day it broke! zippo didnt have any of the proper rivots to repair it, so it sits in a memory box until i can find the right parts and send it all back in to be repaired!


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## UBC03 (Nov 18, 2015)

@jonnygranada...funny you mentioned the zippo handwarmers . I bought 3 for work this winter. One for each pocket and one in my top bib pocket of my carharts. The young guys always got a kick outta me lighting my handwarmers every morning. A few of them bought some by the end of the job. I guess you can teach young dogs new tricks.


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## gcbright (Dec 1, 2012)

UBC03 said:


> @jonnygranada...funny you mentioned the zippo handwarmers . I bought 3 for work this winter. One for each pocket and one in my top bib pocket of my carharts. The young guys always got a kick outta me lighting my handwarmers every morning. A few of them bought some by the end of the job. I guess you can teach young dogs new tricks.


You have young people in your area that can learn??? Wow!! I thought that breed was vanishing.


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## Chewbacca (Oct 10, 2015)

I'm on the hunt for a rock and roll/macho Zippo. The upside is that there are plenty on the market. Some are Vietnam war collectibles, for example. Some are special editions by bands, or sports teams. 

I have picked them up at markets all over the place, then lost them when they were taken from me by corrupt border officials, at checkpoints, fell out of my pocket when slumming it in various rough locales, or used as 'incentives' to get papers signed. I think I have lost dozens over the years. 

Otherwise, I would put duct tape around a cheap plastic lighter and hide it for emergencies. The tape stops the crappy plastic from shattering.


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## UBC03 (Nov 18, 2015)

gcbright said:


> You have young people in your area that can learn??? Wow!! I thought that breed was vanishing.


They learn quick when they're freezin.


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## gcbright (Dec 1, 2012)

UBC03 said:


> They learn quick when they're freezin.


Most of the young ones around here have permanant brain freeze so I don't know if it would work here.


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## UBC03 (Nov 18, 2015)

gcbright said:


> Most of the young ones around here have permanant brain freeze so I don't know if it would work here.


The day they all had an epiphany that the old guy wasn't crazy. The safety guys registered the temp at -18 with the windchill on the ground. We were 60+feet in the air. I had my bibs ,coat, and a raincoat" Keeps the heat from the hand warmers in and cuts the wind"..they were raggin on me pretty bad ,until it was just me and a couple other old guys left working. The kids went home. Losing a day's pay makes you learn how to deal with stuff pretty quick.


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## UBC03 (Nov 18, 2015)

@jonnygranada. ..they're having a lighter sale on pipes and cigars. Com. . Soft flames, bunch of zippos on it


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## gcbright (Dec 1, 2012)

UBC03 said:


> The day they all had an epiphany that the old guy wasn't crazy. The safety guys registered the temp at -18 with the windchill on the ground. We were 60+feet in the air. I had my bibs ,coat, and a raincoat" Keeps the heat from the hand warmers in and cuts the wind"..they were raggin on me pretty bad ,until it was just me and a couple other old guys left working. The kids went home. Losing a day's pay makes you learn how to deal with stuff pretty quick.


Great story! Gives me hope that at least some of the younger generation can learn and be trained.


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## UBC03 (Nov 18, 2015)

gcbright said:


> Great story! Gives me hope that at least some of the younger generation can learn and be trained.


We still get our fair share of know it all, wanna be tough guys. They work harder not smarter. They usually don't last long. Safety is the main thing . If they don't pick that up real quick, they get run off the job in a hurry. Nobody wants to die because some kid doesn't listen.


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## MichiganSRT8 (Jan 9, 2016)

I promise our young generation can be trained, I'm in it haha. The problem is every generation has always had a group of those people, but these few coming up seem to have more and more. And more people who feel like being "offended" by something gives them a right to b!tch about it and that it should stop someone from doing it, dang your offended by something, grow a pair. I fully believe this generation coming up now is the wimpiest and biggest complainers there ever has been, everyone is a victim and it pisses me off cause I was raised the opposite. People wanting free college and stuff throughout, well I worked all through college and kept good grades to get the most scholarships as possible, graduated with no school loans and a degree from a top University in the US. Biggest problem I have noticed is kids in my generation just don't want to put in the work and feel entitled to something they haven't even worked for yet, the world owes you nothing, get out there and work for it. I may be skewed though as I have worked since I was like 6 at my grandparents rollerskating rink.


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## DavidTanner (Dec 10, 2015)

I love the look of the torch lighters but to save on butane I normally just fire up the $2 bic. It serves its purpose. I prefer a torch lighter if I'm smoking a big RG cigar but the more I smoke the more I notice I've been moving away from them. 

A fancy torch lighter is nice if you're in public. It's a nice show piece. I've wanted to pull the trigger on some nice ones but considering most of them go for $30-$50 its hard to justify essentially buying a nice wallet with no cash in it. 

Once I get a few thousand cigars in my collection I'll probably start collecting fancy lighters a little more. 

Did I mention this is an expensive hobby? Lol


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## wwiding (Feb 5, 2016)

I'm still relatively new to cigars but I'll add my two cents. I find it easier to light with a torch lighter, but I also have an old soft flame butane lighter I found in an antique store that works great for controlled touch ups. I have used a bic to light and I can't taste the lighter fluid.


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## gcbright (Dec 1, 2012)

MichiganSRT8 said:


> I promise our young generation can be trained, I'm in it haha. The problem is every generation has always had a group of those people, but these few coming up seem to have more and more. And more people who feel like being "offended" by something gives them a right to b!tch about it and that it should stop someone from doing it, dang your offended by something, grow a pair. I fully believe this generation coming up now is the wimpiest and biggest complainers there ever has been, everyone is a victim and it pisses me off cause I was raised the opposite. People wanting free college and stuff throughout, well I worked all through college and kept good grades to get the most scholarships as possible, graduated with no school loans and a degree from a top University in the US. Biggest problem I have noticed is kids in my generation just don't want to put in the work and feel entitled to something they haven't even worked for yet, the world owes you nothing, get out there and work for it. I may be skewed though as I have worked since I was like 6 at my grandparents rollerskating rink.


You just established yourself as not a part of the ones we are complaining about by saying "You worked for it". That makes you far older than a young one.


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## Hari Seldon (Aug 22, 2015)

wwiding said:


> I'm still relatively new to cigars but I'll add my two cents. I find it easier to light with a torch lighter, but I also have an old soft flame butane lighter I found in an antique store that works great for controlled touch ups. I have used a bic to light and I can't taste the lighter fluid.


I believe bics use butane, just like expensive torch or soft flame lighters, so there shouldn't be any lighter fluid taste or smell. I know bics were frowned upon at a time because this was not understood and they got lumped in with zippos, but I think they are generally accepted as good to use with cigars at this point. You can even get some kind of housing that converts the Bic to a torch.

Me, I use a torch only (Xikar table lighter is the nice one I have, also a Ronson and a couple of cheapies here and there) because I only smoke outdoors at home and need the wind resistance.


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## jonnygranada (Feb 25, 2016)

Chewbacca said:


> I'm on the hunt for a rock and roll/macho Zippo. The upside is that there are plenty on the market. Some are Vietnam war collectibles, for example. Some are special editions by bands, or sports teams.
> 
> I have picked them up at markets all over the place, then lost them when they were taken from me by corrupt border officials, at checkpoints, fell out of my pocket when slumming it in various rough locales, or used as 'incentives' to get papers signed. I think I have lost dozens over the years.
> 
> Otherwise, I would put duct tape around a cheap plastic lighter and hide it for emergencies. The tape stops the crappy plastic from shattering.





UBC03 said:


> @jonnygranada...funny you mentioned the zippo handwarmers . I bought 3 for work this winter. One for each pocket and one in my top bib pocket of my carharts. The young guys always got a kick outta me lighting my handwarmers every morning. A few of them bought some by the end of the job. I guess you can teach young dogs new tricks.


Chewbacca I here ya on wanting a wham-o-dyne zippo! I bought one in 98 that i still carry with me everyday! Its a nice vintage styled Ford V8 logo lighter. Shucks.... i remember when it was still blue on the badge and not a shiny steel from all the wear and tear and use it has gotten over the years!

UBC - I bought my hand warmers because i got stuck at a job that had a temp rating at around -30 with the wind chill!!! this semi young guy learned really fast! LOL!!!! I have used them almost everyday this year! We didn't get our normal amount of snow but it got down there in the temp ranges!!!!


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## wwiding (Feb 5, 2016)

Hari Seldon said:


> I believe bics use butane, just like expensive torch or soft flame lighters, so there shouldn't be any lighter fluid taste or smell. I know bics were frowned upon at a time because this was not understood and they got lumped in with zippos, but I think they are generally accepted as good to use with cigars at this point. You can even get some kind of housing that converts the Bic to a torch.
> 
> Me, I use a torch only (Xikar table lighter is the nice one I have, also a Ronson and a couple of cheapies here and there) because I only smoke outdoors at home and need the wind resistance.


I wasn't aware of that, that's good to know. That would explain why the cigars I lit with a bic always tasted fine to me.


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## deke (Aug 19, 2013)

I like my IM Corona Double Corona which has a soft flame indoors at my favorite cigar lounge or in dead calm outside. Can gently toast the foot, and then light.

Normal outdoors -- need the torch because the soft flame blows all over.


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